What is Karnataka’s new gig worker grievance system? | Explained

<p>The story so far:</p><p>On May 1, 2026 — International Workers’ Day — the Karnataka government announced the operationalisation of a specialised grievance redressal mechanism for platform-based gig workers in the State. Claimed to be the first government-backed grievance handling mechanism for gig workers in India, it allows workers to officially lodge complaints through the Integrated Public Grievance Redressal System (IPGRS), the State’s centralised digital platform for addressing citizen grievances related to government schemes.</p><p>How does the system work?</p><p>Platform-based gig workers can now officially lodge grievances, including those related to pay, working conditions, and platform-specific disputes, via the IPGRS.</p><p>Under the Karnataka Platform-Based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Act, every aggregator platform must constitute an Internal Dispute Resolution Committee (IDRC). Grievances filed on the IPGRS will be automatically routed to the respective platform’s IDRC. Upon receiving a complaint, the IDRC is expected to attempt resolution within 15 working days, and is allowed up to 45 days to issue a final order. Any party aggrieved by the final decision can escalate the matter to the Karnataka Gig Workers Welfare Board within 30 days.</p><p>What concerns can a gig worker raise?</p><p>Gig workers can raise complaints related to suspension, blocking, or deactivation of accounts, termination from the platform, reduction or withholding of payments, unfair penalties, discrimination, unsafe working conditions, or other violations of rights guaranteed under the Act.</p><p>What gap does it address?</p><p>While many platforms have internal grievance redressal mechanisms, these systems exist outside a formal dispute resolution framework. As a result, gig workers have often reported a lack of resolution to their grievances. Many have complained that platforms quite often turn a blind eye to the workers’ woes.</p><p>The Karnataka government’s move seeks to bring more structure and transparency into the process and ensure legal recourse for these workers outside the formal economy. Gig workers can now officially lodge grievances through the portal, which will then be routed to the respective platform’s IDRC. The government, as a central facilitator, will monitor the process.</p><p>Have platforms already registered for this?</p><p>According to Karnataka government officials, platforms such as Namma Yatri and Yulu have integrated their IDRC contact details with the government portal, while others, including Amazon, are in the process of doing so.</p><p>Why is the mechanism being implemented now?</p><p>The Karnataka Platform-Based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Act, 2025, was officially notified in September 2025.</p><p>In March 2026, Karnataka became the first Indian State to notify the Rules to enact the law for gig workers. The grievance-redressal mechanism for gig workers in the State forms a crucial part of the Act. It is considered a major deterrent that would hinder arbitrary terminations or account deactivation of gig workers and address their concerns.</p><p>What are the other key developments related to the Act?</p><p>In January 2026, the Karnataka Platform-Based Gig Workers Welfare Development Board was constituted to implement welfare measures.</p><p>Platforms have been mandated to furnish details of both the company and their gig workers — including name, age, phone number, Aadhaar number, UAN, and bank account details — to the Board. This data will be integrated into the Board’s portal.</p><p>According to the government, so far, around 12 platforms/aggregators have provided details of 12 lakh active gig workers in the State.</p><p>However, given that several workers are associated with multiple platforms, the numbers could contain overlaps. This is expected to be sorted once the government comes up with unique IDs for each worker.</p><p>In February, the government announced that 1% of every transaction will be collected from aggregator platforms to provide social security benefits to platform-based gig workers.</p><p>Is there a cap for the welfare fee?</p><p>The cap per transaction varies for different services.</p><p>For food and grocery delivery services such as Swiggy, Zomato, Blinkit, Zepto, and BigBasket, the cap is at ₹0.5. For ride-hailing services such as Rapido, Namma Yatri, and Uber, the cap is ₹0.5, ₹0.75, and ₹1 for two-wheelers, three-wheelers, and four-wheelers, respectively. Logistics services like Porter will have to pay ₹0.5, ₹0.75, ₹1, and ₹1.5 per transaction for two-wheelers, three-wheelers, light commercial vehicles, and heavy commercial vehicles, respectively. For e-marketplace services, ₹0.5, ₹0.75, and ₹1 have been fixed as the cap for two-wheelers, three-wheelers, and light commercial vehicles, respectively. Professional activity providers like Urban Company have the highest cap at ₹1.5.</p><p>While the fee has come into effect from the quarter beginning in April, it will be collected at the start of the following quarter, from the 5th of July.</p><p>What will the welfare fee be used for?</p><p>The welfare fee will go to the Karnataka Platform-Based Gig Workers’ Fund to provide social security and welfare benefits to platform-based gig workers in the State.</p><p>According to government officials, schemes for gig workers, depending on the platform they work for, are being developed and will be put forward for deliberation at the next board meeting. The schemes being considered include life insurance, accidental benefit, disability benefit, medical benefit, maternity benefit, and old-age protection, depending on the nature of gig work.</p>